Tom Beaulieu

Mr. Speaker, I’m having a meeting with the JLC, Joint Leadership Council of all authorities, on the 13th and 14th. We’ll discuss it at that time. It should be soon after that. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, I became aware of the name shortly before the press release had occurred. Unfortunately, during the time when the decision was being made, we were in Ulukhaktok at the Caucus meeting. From Ulukhaktok, I then went south immediately, and that press release occurred on the day that I travelled to southern Canada.

The information is not given to me until the decision is made. I knew that we were seeking a CEO. I knew that. The deputy kept me advised that they were interviewing individuals, and the process was that once the decision was made, I would be advised. At this time I was...

I don’t have the number of individuals that have taken advantage of the four treatment centres that we have contracts with in the South; however, I do know that when individuals have approached Health and Social Services, whether it be through a wellness office in their community or through the department or through one of the authorities, that it’s been fairly quick. The process is very quick and the individual is able to go out for treatment in a very short time basis, and that is what we were trying to achieve. But the numbers of the people that went and the numbers that had completed the...

Thank you. There wasn’t medical detox occurring at Nats’ejee K’eh, number one. People were on a waiting list and they had to wait for six weeks in community counselling before they get to Nats’ejee K’eh. So there was no actual medical detox occurring in Nats’ejee K’eh.

Medical detox is available at the hospitals and individuals can be given hospital beds for medical detox based upon requests. At this time if individuals need medical detoxification outside of the hospital environment, then our option is to send that individual or individuals who are requiring medical detox to the southern...

Mr. Speaker, I wish to table the following document, entitled Government of the Northwest Territories Response to Motion 18-17(4), Organ Donation and Human Tissue Act. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, I don’t have that information with me, but I do know that we have looked at other jurisdictions. We recognize that there are various ways that other jurisdictions have gone about renewing their health care or providing health care cards such as decision to go with a picture on the health care card and so on. We have looked at other jurisdictions. Specifically which jurisdictions we looked at and tried to follow, I don’t know which it was. I think we are continuing on with a system that we have developed ourselves. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, it is a standard process. It is a manual process. Thank you.

Mr. Speaker, the Member is correct; the action plan is put together by government, but a lot of the actions are carried out by NGOs that we fund. I have a document here. Yesterday I spoke about the 50 or so NGOs that the Department of Health and Social Services support directly under the disabilities that I think may have perhaps six different organizations that we support within the funding of those NGOs. Our funding some of the action plans were put out. I think there are only a couple of them that are considered to be something that they were not going to carry out. I can go back to the...

Mahsi, Mr. Speaker. The 2007 NWT Action Plan for Persons with Disabilities had almost 90 recommendations. Of those recommendations, 41 of those recommendations were completed and 38 of those recommendations are ongoing. Nine of those recommendations were considered incomplete for one reason or another.

I’ve received e-mails from the various MLAs. I would say under 20 e-mails indicating to us that there’s an issue with health care cards not coming on time, but we’ve set allowances for those individuals if they had applied for a health care card and by the time their birthday came around had not received health care, then we would cover them.

I guess, again, we need to make sure that people have coverage, health coverage, and that’s what we’re doing. Thank you.